Agenda

Webinar instructions will be emailed before the date of the webinar.

Please log into the webinar 15 – 30 minutes before start time.

Tuesday, December 12, 2023
8:30 am – 4:15 pm EST

 

Understanding New York Easements and Eminent Domain
Presented by: C. Sigmond

  • What is and is not an easement
  • Reviewing state law on easements
  • Creating easements: easements by necessity, easements by use, written easements
  • Identifying critical distinctions between easements in gross, easements appurtenant and prescriptive easements
  • Maintaining easements
  • Knowing when and how to terminate easements
  • Obstructing use of easements and determining remedies for obstruction

Understanding Utility Easements and Rights of Way 
Presented by: C. Sigmond,

  • Current law on utility rights of way
    • Federal laws and regulations
    • State laws and regulations
  • Types of utilities affected
    • Electric, water, natural gas, telecommunications, satellite communications
  • Basis for and definition of the easement
  • Encroachments and interferences
  • Maintenance
  • Environmental issues
  • Condemnation law
  • Current issues involving utility easements

Trespass, Adverse Possession and Other Unauthorized Access to Land
Presented by: N. Pawlowski

  • Elements of civil trespass to land
  • Reviewing the history of adverse possession
  • Maintaining a claim for adverse possession
    • Statute of limitations
    • Elements of a claim
  • Defending against a claim for adverse possession
  • Examining recent adverse possession cases

Eminent Domain Law
Presented by:  J. Rikon 

  • Understanding eminent domain powers
    • Source of eminent domain powers
    • History of the exercise of eminent domain powers
    • Types of eminent domain “takings”
  • Just compensation: valuing “taken” property
  • Privatization of eminent domain and other current issues

Participating in the Condemnation Process
Presented by:  A. Levi

  • Condemnation process for government use
  • Hearing and right of appeal
  • Valuing the property taken
  • Condemnation process for utility and other quasi-public use

 

Webinar Instructions

All attendees must log-on through their own email – attendees may not watch together if they wish to earn continuing education credit. HalfMoon Education Inc. must be able to prove attendance if either the attendee or HalfMoon Education Inc. is audited.

Certificates of completion can be downloaded in PDF form upon passing a short quiz. A link to the quiz will be sent to each qualifying attendee immediately after the webinar. The certificate can be downloaded from the Results page of the quiz upon scoring 80% or higher.

Webinars are presented via GoToWebinar, an easy-to-use application that can be run on most systems and tablets. Instructions and login information will be provided in an email sent close to the date of the webinar. It is highly recommended that you download, install and test the application before the webinar begins by clicking on the link in the email.

GoToWebinar App requirements:
Windows 7 – 10 or Mac OSX Mavericks (10.9) – macOS Catalina (10.15)

Web Browser:
The two most recent version of the following browsers:
Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Microsoft Edge
Internet Explorer v11 (or later) with Flash enabled

Internet connection: Minimum of 1Mbps       Hardware: 2GB RAM or more

For more information, visit the Support section at www.gotowebinar.com

Credits

Attorneys
7.0 Areas of Professional Practice CLE Hours

Engineers
6.0 PDHs

PIE - Practicing Institute of Engineering
6.0 PDHs

Land Surveyors
6.0 PDHs

 

Continuing Education Credit Information

This webinar is open to the public and is designed to qualify for 6.0 PDHs for professional engineers and land surveyors in New York.

This webinar has been evaluated for compliance with NYS Mandatory Continuing Education requirements for professional engineers by the Practicing Institute of Engineering and has been approved for 6.0 PDHs in the fields of professional engineering and land surveying.

HalfMoon Education is certified by the New York State CLE Board as an Accredited Provider of CLE programs. This nontraditional course offers 7.0 Areas of Professional Practice CLE hours, which are appropriate for experienced attorneys. HalfMoon Education will provide financial hardship assistance to New York attorneys who wish to attend this event. Contact Frank Chapman at fchapman@halfmoonseminars.org for details and to apply.

Attendance will be monitored, and attendance certificates will be available after the webinar for those who attend the entire course and score a minimum 80% on the quiz that follows the course (multiple attempts allowed).

On-Demand Credits

This course, when taken in the on-demand format, is intended for educational purposes only and is not approved for any continuing education credits.

Speakers

Ashley Levi

Partner at Goldstein, Rikon, Rikon & Levi, P.C. in New York, NY

Ms. Levi joined Goldstein, Rikon & Rikon, P.C., the predecessor to Goldstein, Rikon, Rikon & Houghton, P.C. She received her Juris Doctor degree from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in 2009 and her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2004. Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Levi interned at the Office of the New York State Attorney General, Andrew Cuomo’s office in the Tobacco Compliance Unit. Ms. Levi is admitted to practice in New York.

Neil Pawlowski

Founding Partner of Duggan & Pawlowski LLP in Buffalo, NY

Mr. Pawlowski is an experienced real estate attorney who represents clients in both residential and commercial real estate transactions. His day-to-day practice includes helping clients with residential and commercial purchases and sales, title examinations, foreclosures, mortgage lending, leasing and landlord/tenant law. Mr. Pawlowski frequently makes presentations to real estate agents, mortgage brokers, sellers and home buyers on a variety of topics related to real estate law, including contract drafting, foreclosures, mortgage financing, short sales, avoiding liability, REO Transactions, and home purchases. Due to handling hundreds of sales, purchases and financing transactions each year, he has been selected to the Super Lawyers Rising Star List, Real Estate Law, 2015 – 2021, an honor bestowed upon only 2.5 percent of attorneys in Upstate New York each year. Mr. Pawlowski is also an experienced litigation attorney and has represented clients in several real estate lawsuits, such as actions for partition, actions to quiet title, and specific performance actions.

Joshua H. Rikon, CRE

Partner at Goldstein, Rikon, Rikon & Levi, P.C. in New York, NY

Mr. Rikon has practiced eminent domain law in New York since 2003 when he was admitted to practice as an attorney and counselor at law. He received his Juris Doctor degree from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in 2002 and his Bachelor of Arts degree from Hofstra University in 1999. Prior to being admitted to practice, Mr. Rikon completed his law school’s externship requirement at Steinhardt Pesick & Cohen, P.C., one of Michigan’s finest eminent domain, condemnation, and land use law practices. Mr. Rikon is a member of the New York State and American Bar Associations as well as the New York City and Westchester County Bar Associations. He served as the vice-chairman of the Condemnation Committee of the ABA Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law. Mr. Rikon has taught continuing legal education courses; he was awarded the CRE designation from The Counselors Of Real Estate; he is a member of Scribes, the American Society of Legal Writers, and he has also been designated a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers.

Carol A. Sigmond

Partner at Greenspoon Marder LLC in New York, NY

Ms. Sigmond is a partner in the Construction and Litigation practice groups at Greenspoon Marder. With more than four decades of legal experience, She focuses her practice on construction industry matters, including arbitration, appeals, bid protests, contract preparation, mediation, litigation, and suretyship. Ms. Sigmond represents clients in construction defect litigation relating to issues that arise when adjacent owners develop their properties, as well as expediting a builder’s construction project by ensuring that the proper contracts are in place. As a seasoned practitioner, She has a history of litigating construction disputes for public works and buildings in both the public and private sectors. She also has extensive knowledge preparing contract documents, including designbuild, construction management, guaranteed maximum price, and fixed-price contracts. Additionally, Ms. Sigmond is an experienced mediator and arbitrator handling construction or real estate cases for the New York County Supreme Court Commercial Division Roster of Volunteer Mediators and the American Arbitration Association’s Roster of Construction Industry Arbitrators. For several years, She has taken an active role in shaping the construction law community in New York. Ms. Sigmond is a former Vice President of the New York State Bar Association and a former President of the New York County Lawyers Association. She is also a frequent speaker and has authored a number of legal publications relating to construction law and publishes The Co-Op Condo Help Line in the monthly Mann Report. Furthermore, she was a member of Law360‘s 2020 Construction Editorial Advisory Board. As a recognized leader, Ms. Sigmond was named among the Crain’s New York Business “Notable Women in Law” list for 2022, New York State Bar Association’s 2020 “Real Estate Section Award for Professionalism,” and received the Albert Nelson Marquis “Lifetime Achievement Award” by Marquis Who’s Who in 2019. She is also listed as “Top Rated” by New York Super Lawyers for Construction Litigation. She earned her J.D. degree from The Catholic University of America School of Law.